Disagreeing With Research

Recently, our class has discussed results from an article titled, "Personality and Self-Esteem as Predictors of Young People's Technology Use." The article claimed that certain personality types determined what type of technology they used, and how they used it. For example, neurotic individuals were found to use text messaging more rather than calling.

While this may be true, I think the researchers fail to take into account other factors that may explain such behaviors. I know from my own personal experience, as well as from others, sometimes text messaging is just convenient, which is why I text more than call, and I do not consider myself as a neurotic personality type. Also, as ridiculous as this may sound, some people, such as myself, are just plain lazy to talk on the phone. Sometimes I find myself laying in bed, and instead of wanting to talk on the phone, I would rather watch TV and text at the same time. This certainly does not mean I have a particular personality type.

I just thought I'd post this because I did not get the chance to express my beliefs in class. I believe that more research needs to be done within this topic, and the researchers should take into account of other significant factors that may affect the results of the study.

In case you are interested in the article, it may be accessed through here:

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/23458724_Personality_and_Self-Esteem_as_Predictors_of_Young_People's_Technology_Use

Effects of Technology on Self-Esteem

On my last blog, I wrote about an article that studied the effects of technology on race, gender, and self-esteem. To continue on with that discussion, I will explain how self-esteem specifically is affected by technology and how it in turn affects psychology.

Being that my topic is psychology, it can be fairly obvious how self-esteem affects psychology. Psychology deals mostly with the study of mental capabilities. When a person's self-esteem is high, it has significant effects that are different than from a person with low self-esteem. A person with high self-esteem generally live a happier life with a desire to accomplish their goals and to keep an active social life. On the contrary, a person with low self-esteem has a more difficult time making friends and do not have a high respect for themselves.

An example of how technology affects self-esteem can be found in the article, "Self-Concept, Self-Esteem, Gender, Race, and Information Technology Use." They did a study using video games and found that they caused lower behavioral self-concept and lower self-esteem. This may be due to the fact that most video games have some degree of violence, which could leave psychological effects on the person.

On the brighter side, technology could have positive effects on a person's self-esteem. According to "Effects of Technology on Classrooms and Students" (http://www2.ed.gov/pubs/EdReformStudies/EdTech/effectsstudents.html#increased) some teachers reposted an increase in self-esteem in students who were engaged in technology. Some students felt a "sense of empowerment" and "increased competence" after mastering some technological tasks. This could be true considering that technological devices today can be complicated, yet incredible in how they make things easier for our society.

In addition, the first article mentioned earlier stated that females were found to have a higher social-concept after using the internet. Because of this increase in social abilities, the internet could help women with their self-esteem by allowing them to socialize with others. More social networks=higher self-esteem.

As you can see, technology can certainly affect a person's self-esteem, thus affecting a person's psychological being. It is important to note that although technology can be fun and rewarding to use, a person must realize that technology can have both positive and negative effects.

Response to Article: Gender, Race, and Technology

As pointed out in the beginning of this article, there were many other studies that either contradicted or were found to be consistent with this article’s study. However, according to this study, there were some effects of technology on gender in regards to self-concept and self-esteem. For example, although there was no gender difference found in overall self-esteem, girls were shown to have higher academic and behavioral self-concept, while boys were found to have higher physical appearance and athletic self-concept. Also, contrary to what some studies have suggested, girls were not found to have a higher social concept than boys (439).

In regards to videogames, it was found that boys, regardless of race, played more videogames than girls (this of course, did not come as a surprise). According to most studies, videogames caused lower behavioral self-concept, low self-esteem, and improved visual spatial skills (440).

Looking at these results, one could say that technology can certainly have different effects on both males and females. Because girls were found to have higher academic and behavioral concept, this could be due to the different reasons why males and females use the Internet. As stated in the introduction of the article, males were found to use the internet more often than women, but also for different reasons. Males would use the internet more for “commercial transactions” (438) while females would use the internet more for social networking. Perhaps making these social connections have helped females achieve higher academic self-concept, and certainly behavioral self-concept.

Personally, I do not think that this evidence should affect the use of technology in classrooms. As I have said in the beginning, there were many other studies that contradicted the results of this study. Therefore, much more research needs to be done in order to determine whether or not these effects should affect classrooms. In addition, I feel like no matter what, these results will not do much to change how classrooms are run. For example, the internet is one of the most widely used technologies of our time. Teachers AND students need to use the internet for several purposes, therefore, it seems almost inevitable to use such technology, whether we like to or not. In regards to videogames and evidence showing that they would cause lower self-esteem and self-concept, it is very uncommon for classrooms to even use videogames to convey the lesson plans.

According to the results of the study and what we have discussed in class, I think that race, gender, and self-concept would all contribute to the “digital divide” occurring in our society. The study found one significant difference between African Americans and Caucasian Americans, and it was that African Americans had lower behavioral self-concept than Caucasian Americans. Why this was the case is still unknown. In addition, differences between gender and self-concept were also found. Males were found to use the internet more than females, and the use of technology has shown to affect a person’s self-concept. Therefore, it would make sense that all three factors would contribute to the “digital divide.”

The article is titled, "Self-Concept, Self-Esteem, Gender, Race, and information Technology Use"

Online Therapy

I don't know about you, but when I think of therapy (psychologically speaking), the first thing that pops into my head is a couch in front of a therapist asking question after question to get you to open up about your problems.

But according to an article in the online journal Psychology Today, there is a new program that can provide therapy from inside your own home. Therapeutic Learning Program (TLP) is program that is computer-based. Dr. Roger Gould, the man behind TLP, describes it as a "10-session program that explores in very fine detail each person's specific problem. It's what therapists do over a long period of time, but the computer does it systematically."

According to Dr. Gould, TLP may provide more accurate results and better coping results for the patient because since the patient can use the program on his or her own without having anyone else in the room, it may be easier for the patient to be more open about his or her problems. In addition, TLP is more personal and pertains more to the patient's individual needs, rather than the individual having to go out and purchase self-help books that they would have to apply to themselves. Sometimes self-help books do not have all the answers pertaining to each individual case.

One of the main problems, however, is that the internet is a widely used type of technology. It continues to be unregulated, therefore, quality control will be difficult, considering that there is no face-to-face communication. Will TLP replace these face-to-face therapy sessions? Only time will tell...

The article can be seen here: http://www.psychologytoday.com/articles/200107/technology-psychology

Technology + Education = Educational Psychology?

Continuing on from my previous blog regarding education and technology, I thought it would be important to point out that I am currently taking a course known as Educational Psychology. Dr. Patricia Alexander is not only my professor for this class, but she also wrote the textbook we are using for the course. The textbook is titled, "Psychology in Learning and Instruction."

http://vig-fp.prenhall.com/bigcovers/0139748741.jpg

Luckily for me, Dr. Alexander devotes a whole chapter to technology and how it has been effective in the educational process. She states that, "educational technologies are commonplace in schools and classrooms--so much so that their presence and their power are simply accepted without question or reflection," (270).

In addition to how much technology has evolved the educational process, she also talks about the effects of technology, more specifically the assisted effects and residual effects of computer-based technology (274).

Assisted effects are the effects shown WITH technology. For example, if I am unsure on how to do a math problem, I could look up how to do it online. This shows me using technology to learn something.

Residual effects are the effects shown AFTER the use of technology. After being exposed to how to do the math problem online, I should be able to do the problem on my own without technology.

These type of effects can help show how much technology can (or cannot) be beneficial in a classroom setting. With the computer fighting for the lead as the most commonly used technological device (perhaps it has already taken the lead), there is a never-ending list of things it can do to help educate students.

1. PowerPoint lectures (as some of us students are already familiar with)

2. YouTube videos

3. Microsoft Excel/Word etc

4. Pictures/Videos/Movies other media

5. Virtual Classrooms

6. Internet

And the list goes on.

Now you might ask: What does this have to do with psychology? As stated earlier, this class is known as Educational Psychology. The reason why technology comes into play, is because the class is about educating the student in the best way possible, and using technology is without a doubt, one of the best ways. Not only does it capture the student's attention, but using technology also helps to relate to the student. In my personal opinion, having a professor use new technology would certainly grab my interest, thus allowing me to become more focused on the lesson, that is, if I am not distracted by other technologies...

Technology: Classroom Future vs. Classroom Failure

For the past couple of days, the main question for our class has been whether or not technology is beneficial for educational purposes. And if so, how has it been used to educate?

Well, for the first question, it is certainly difficult to say that technology is not beneficial, considering the fact that society uses technology every day, and in most cases, its necessary. I can't remember the last time I was in a classroom in which the professor did not use the computer to convey his or her lecture. Can you?

Naturally the computer has become the number one source to communicate information, whether it is inside a classroom or not. It has PowerPoint, Word, the internet, etc. In addition, the majority of the younger generation have computers, therefore, it would make sense that teachers would use this as a bridge to connect with their students.

With the world of technology vastly becoming, well, our world as we know it, it can be foreseen that it would certainly change the way our classroom looks and works. We've already seen these changes. Lessons were taught in a variety of ways, ranging from verbal lessons only and chalkboards, to overhead projectors to the computer. While we still see chalkboards in classrooms today, it is very seldom that we ever see the teacher actually writing on the board.

As far as becoming a classroom failure, distraction may be the number one downside to technology (in my opinion). While having a computer allows taking notes easier and faster, no student can deny the fact that computers also offer ways of distraction, especially with the internet just a click away. Other problems that may arise are technical difficulties, which were clearly seen during the Virtual Classroom our Jour289 class had the other day. However, technical difficulties can usually be fixed. Distraction...not so much.

With that said, I will end this blog with a YouTube video shown in one of my classes. It not only talks about technology, but it takes a look at our society, and our world from the past, present, and the future. It really makes you think about how much can change in such a short amount of time, just like the look of our classrooms.

Article: "Psychological Invention Relieves Breast Cancer..."

I came across an article today titled "Psychological Invention Relieves Breast Cancer Patients From Depression and Reduces Inflammation." I thought this article was interesting because I was not aware that depression was a contributing factor to cancer. Unfortunately, the article does not go into much detail about what exactly this psychological invention is, but that according to a study, the invention causes a decrease in depression in the patient, which in turn reduces the inflammation. This is a great technological advancement because with cancer having one of the highest death rates, an invention relieving depression sounds like it is an invention worth looking into. I hope we will be able to learn more about this invention and whether or not it will become global if approved. Here is the link if you're interested to read more:

http://www.medindia.net/News/Psychological-Invention-Relieves-Breast-Cancer-Patients-From-Depression-And-Reduces-Inflammation-57519-1.htm